Miss America (Madeline Joyce Frank) is a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. She first appeared in ''

Marvel Mystery Comics ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' (first issue titled simply ''Marvel Comics'') is an American comic book series published during the 1930s–1940s period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. It was the first publication of Mar ...

'' #49 (Nov. 1943), and was created by writer

Otto Binder Otto Oscar Binder (; August 26, 1911 – October 13, 1974) was an American author of science fiction and non-fiction books and stories, and comic books. He is best known as the co-creator of Supergirl and for his many scripts for '' Captain Ma ...

and artist

Al Gabriele Al Gabriele (deceased) was an American comic book artist during the 1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of comic books. He is known for his work on some of Marvel Comics' earliest Captain America and Sub-Mariner stories, and ...

for

Timely Comics Timely Comics is the common name for the group of corporations that was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics. "Timely Publications became the name ...

, the 1940s precursor of Marvel, in the period fans and historians call the

Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and many well-known char ...

Publication history

As superheroes began to fade out of fashion in the post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

era, comic-book publishers scrambled to explore new types of stories, characters, and audiences. In an attempt to appeal to young female readers, comics companies began introducing more female superheroes, including Timely's

Blonde Phantom The Blonde Phantom (Louise Grant Mason) is a fictional masked crime fighter appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created for Marvel predecessor Timely Comics, she first appeared in '' All Select Comics'' #11 (cover-dat ...

, Golden Girl,

Namora Namora () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Ken Bald and Syd Shores, she first appeared in ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' #82 (May 1947). She is from Atlantis (Marvel Comics), Atlantis an ...

Sun Girl Sun Girl, in comics, may refer to: *Sun Girl (Marvel Comics) Sun Girl is the name of two fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history The first Sun Girl was created by artist Ken Bald ...

, and

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

, and its teen-humor star

Millie the Model ''Millie the Model'' was Marvel Comics' longest-running humor title, first published by the company's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and continuing through its 1950s forerunner, Atlas Comics, to 1970s Marvel. The comic book series deals with ...

;

Fox Comics Fox Feature Syndicate (also known as Fox Comics, Fox Publications, and Bruns Publications, Inc.) was a comic book publisher from early in the period known to fans and historians as the Golden Age of Comic Books. Founded by entrepreneur Victor S. ...

' revival of

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing company which operated from 1937 to 1956 and was a creative, influential force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comic Books. Notable, long-running titles published by Qualit ...

Phantom Lady Phantom Lady is a Fictional character, fictional Superhero#Female superheroes and villains, superheroine, one of the first such characters to debut in the 1940s Golden Age of Comic Books. Originally published by Quality Comics, the character was ...

; and DC's

Black Canary The Black Canary is the name of two superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics: Dinah Drake and her daughter Dinah Laurel Lance. The original version was created by the writer-artist team of Robert Kanigher and ...

had featured an unrelated character called

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

in ''Military Comics'' in 1941 and 1942. In 1943,

published ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' #49, featuring a new character by the name "Miss America". Following two appearances in ''Marvel Mystery'', Timely's Miss America received her own book, ''Miss America Comics'' (no

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...

) in early 1944. She was the third female comic book heroine to get her own solo book, after

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

and

Sheena, Queen of the Jungle Sheena, Queen of the Jungle, is a fictional American comic book jungle girl heroine, originally published primarily by Fiction House during the Golden Age of Comic Books. She was the first female comic book character with her own title, with her ...

. Some sources list

Ken Bald Kenneth Bruce Bald (August 1, 1920 – March 17, 2019) was an American illustrator and comic book artist best known for the '' Dr. Kildare'' and ''Dark Shadows'' newspaper comic strips. Due to contractual obligations, he is credited as "K. Bruce" ...

as the cover and interior artist, though

Vincent Fago Vincenzo Francisco Gennaro Di Fago (; November 28, 1914 – June 13, 2002),Vincent F. Fago
at the Unite ...

, Timely's interim editor for the drafted

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...

, recalled, "I hired a friend from the animation business, Pauline Loth, and she did the art for the first ''Miss America'' book". Fago has also stated, "I hired her at Timely when she left Fleischer's and came to New York. She did "Miss America" for us and created her costume." The series changed format with its second issue to become the larger, magazine-sized ''Miss America'', though with the conventional comic book combination of glossy covers and newsprint interior. Initiating this format as vol. 1, #2 (Nov. 1944), the publication relegated its superhero to a secondary role and began focusing on teen-

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

comics stories plus articles on such topics as

cooking Cooking, cookery, or culinary arts is the art, science and craft of using heat to Outline of food preparation, prepare food for consumption. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from grilling food over an open fire to using electric ...

fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...

, and

makeup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

. This second issue—which featured a photo-cover of an unknown model dressed in the Miss America costume—also introduced the long-running, teen-humor comics feature "

Patsy Walker Patricia "Patsy" Walker is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stuart Little and Ruth Atkinson, Patsy Walker first appeared in ''Miss America Magazine'' #2 (November 1944), published by Marvel precu ...

". According to ''Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes'', Miss America "fights ordinary criminals, Axis agents, Baron Shinto the Gouger, the murderous teen the Cherub, King Cobra, and the human electric eel the Shocker." Together with the single superhero comic, ''Miss America'' ran 126 issues in a complicated numbering that continued through vol. 7, #50 (March 1953), the 83rd issue. It then reverted to comic book format as ''Miss America'' vol. 1, #51–93 (April 1953 – Nov. 1958). The magazine format had used photo covers of everyday teens. In 1951, starting with vol. #7, #42 (), the logo changed to ''Patsy Walker Starring in Miss America'', with covers now depicting

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

er, Patsy, boyfriend, Buzz Baxter, and romantic-rival, Hedy Wolfe, in cartoon art by, variously,

Al Jaffee Allan Jaffee (born Abraham Jaffee; March 13, 1921) is an American cartoonist. He is notable for his work in the satirical magazine '' Mad'', including his trademark feature, the ''Mad'' Fold-in. Jaffee was a regular contributor to the magazine ...

Morris Weiss Morris S. Weiss (August 11, 1915 – May 18, 2014) was an American comic book and comic strip artist and writer. Active from the 1930s through the mid-1970s, he created the teen-comedy character "Margie" for Timely Comics, the 1940s predecessor ...

. The character appeared in a posthumous flashback in the Marvel Comics publication '' Giant-Size Avengers'' #1 (Aug. 1974).

Fictional character biography

Socially aware teenaged heiress Madeline Joyce was born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and was the niece and

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

of radio mogul James Bennet, who was sponsoring a Professor Lawson, a scientist claiming to have gotten superpowers through a device that had been struck by lightning. Joyce, secretly tampering with the contraption during a thunderstorm that night, herself gained the ability to fly and great strength after lightning similarly struck, knocking her unconscious (she originally had x-ray vision, as well as other powers, but after her few early appearances they were

retconned Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in which established diegetic facts in the plot of a fictional work (those established through the narrative itself) are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subse ...

). The panicky scientist, seeing the apparently dead young woman, destroyed the device and then killed himself. Joyce survived to fight crime as the patriotically garbed Miss America, appearing regularly in ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' and ''

All Winners Comics ''All Winners Comics'' was the name of two American comic book series of the 1940s, both published by Marvel Comics' predecessor, Timely Comics, during the period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books. A superhero anthology comic i ...

''. In the latter, she was a member of Timely's superhero team the

All-Winners Squad The All-Winners Squad is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The company's first such team, it first appeared in ''All Winners Comics'' #19 (Fall 1946), published by Marvel predecessor Timely Co ...

, fighting alongside

Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...

and Bucky, the

original Human Torch The Human Torch, also known as Jim Hammond (originally, Hamond), is a fictional character, fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-artist Carl Burgos, he first appearance, first appeared ...

and Toro, the Sub-Mariner, and the Whizzer in the group's two Golden Age adventures. In the second of these, she wore glasses, one of the extremely few superheroes to require them. Miss America made her final Golden Age appearance in ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' #85 (Feb. 1948). Joyce was later revealed to have married fellow Golden Age superhero Robert Frank (the Whizzer). Because the two had been exposed to radiation, their first child was the radioactive mutant

Nuklo Nuklo (Robert Frank, Jr.) is a fictional character, a mutant appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the son of two characters featured in the Golden Age of Comic Books, the Whizzer and Miss America. Publication histo ...

. However, Joyce died of complications stemming from childbirth with her second, stillborn child due to radiation poisoning from her first offspring while at Wundagore Mountain,

Transia The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...

. It was also suggested during this time that Joyce and Frank were the parents of Avengers members Quicksilver and the

Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 1964) ...

, although this was ultimately refuted when it was revealed that

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

and his wife Magda were those twins' biological parents. Miss America was then retconned in 1976 as a member of the

super-team the

Liberty Legion The Liberty Legion is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was first created in 1976 and set during World War II. Composed of existing heroes from Marvel's 1940s Golden Age of Comic ...

, set between the creation of the Invaders and the post-war All-Winners Squad. As a member of the Liberty Legion, she battled the

Red Skull The Red Skull is an alias used by several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and its predecessor Timely Comics. The first version, George Maxon, appeared in ''Captain America Comics'' #1 and #4. The main ...

, and alongside the Liberty Legion and Invaders she batted the Nazi super-team Super-Axis. Miss America returned from the dead for 24 hours in the 2006 miniseries ''X-Statix Presents: Dead Girl'', where she was revealed to be spending an eternity in

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

. However, in the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z, select entries of characters featured in that miniseries, including that of the Ancient One, state that the characters in hell were impostors. Miss America's reanimated corpse later appears as a cyborg resident of the Core, a subterranean city populated by advanced robots. The cyborg does battle with Miss America's former teammate, the

Human Torch The Human Torch (Jonathan "Johnny" Storm) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is a founding member of the Fantastic Four. He is writer Stan Lee's and artist Jack Kirby's reinvention of ...

, and attempts to lull him into a false sense of security. The Torch however, realizes that the cyborg is not really his old friend, merely a puppet using her body.

Powers and abilities

An electrical discharge from an unknown experimental piece of equipment gave Madeline Joyce the ability to levitate herself through psionic means. By using her levitation ability in connection with carefully planned leaps, Miss America could use her power to fly. She could attain any height at which she could still breathe (approximately 20,000 feet). She could use this power for about 2 hours before mental fatigue would force her to rest. Also fatigue poisons accumulate much slower in her body than that of a normal human, giving her a heightened "vitality." Miss America also possessed the "Strength of a Thousand Men", allowing her to lift weights far heavier than a normal human would be capable of lifting. In addition, Miss America originally possessed the power to project "X-Ray Vision". This power faded over time, leaving her with a need for glasses.

Reception

Accolades

* In 2020, ''

CBR.com ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...

'' ranked Madeline Joyce 3rd in their "Marvel: 10 Best Golden Age Heroines" list. * in 2020, ''

Scary Mommy Scary Mommy is a website that produces content targeting mothers, which generally focuses on parenting, motherhood, current events and pop culture. The site is owned by Bustle Digital Group and is based in New York City. History Scary Mommy ...

'' included Madeline Joyce in their "195+ Marvel Female Characters Are Truly Heroic" list.

Other characters named Miss America

* America Chavez, another superhero using the moniker Miss America, first appeared in the 2011 limited series ''Vengeance'' by

Joe Casey Joe Casey is an American comic book writer. He has worked on titles such as '' Wildcats 3.0'', ''Uncanny X-Men'', '' The Intimates'', '' Adventures of Superman'', and '' G.I. Joe: America's Elite'' among others. As part of the comics creator grou ...

and Nick Dragotta. *In the '' Avengers: The Initiative Annual'' #1, a new version of the

, known as the Liberteens, based in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, debuted, one of their number calling herself ''Ms. America'', and possessing the same powers of flight and strength as the original Miss America.

In other media

* Miss America was loosely adapted for the Japanese television series ''

Battle Fever J is a live-action Japanese-American TV series. The third entry of the ''Super Sentai'' series franchise, ''Battle Fever J'' was a co-production of Toei Company and Marvel Comics. A total of 52 episodes aired on TV Asahi from February 3, 1979 to J ...

'' as part of a collaboration between Marvel Comics and the Japanese studio Toei. Despite retaining the name, the costume and character were changed for the series. * Madeline Joyce / Miss America appears in the ''

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book '' Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the ...

'' episode "Six Forgotten Warriors", voiced by

Kathy Garver Kathleen Marie Garver is an American actress most remembered for having portrayed the teenaged orphan, Catherine "Cissy" Davis, on the popular 1960s CBS sitcom, ''Family Affair''. Before that, she was cast by Cecil B. DeMille in the film ''T ...

. This version is one of five individuals, along with the

Black Marvel The Black Marvel (Daniel Lyons) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by artist Al Gabriele with an unknown writer, he first appeared in ''Mystic Comics'' #5 (March 1941), published by ...

, the

Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

, the Thunderer, and the Whizzer, who got their powers as the result of a flawed attempt at recreating the process that empowered

and had to regulate their powers via special rings. * Madeline Joyce / Miss America makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in a flashback depicted in the ''

Ultimate Spider-Man ''Ultimate Spider-Man'' is a superhero comic book series that was published by Marvel Comics from 2000 to 2011. The series is a modernized re-imagining of Marvel's long-running Spider-Man comic book franchise as part of the company's Ultimate ...

'' episode "S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy". This version is a member of the Invaders.

References

External links

Miss America
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

The Grand Comics Database: ''Miss America''
at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information useful ...

Atlas Tales: ''Miss America''
at AtlasTales.com
Miss America
at Marvel.com wiki {{Avengers characters 1943 comics debuts Characters created by Otto Binder Comics characters introduced in 1943 Fictional characters from Washington, D.C. Golden Age superheroes Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics mutates Marvel Comics titles Timely Comics characters United States-themed superheroes Marvel Comics female superheroes